


And I Will Hold On to You

by radishphilosophy



Category: Les Misérables - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Established Relationship, F/M, Fluff, Marriage Proposal, Tooth-Rotting Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-06
Updated: 2018-11-06
Packaged: 2019-08-19 23:21:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,095
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16544273
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/radishphilosophy/pseuds/radishphilosophy
Summary: A relationship in progress- the development of Marius and Cosette's relationship.





	And I Will Hold On to You

**Author's Note:**

> title from "New Year's Day" by Taylor Swift, I used lyrics from that song in here too.  
> Special thanks to my les amis rp group, especially Katy who's the Marius to my Cosette and who pretty fairly wrote about a quarter of this.  
> Thanks for reading!

Marius had been acting weird.

He was usually kind of… well, quirky, but Cosette didn't know what to make of this jumpiness that had taken over him for the last few days. She usually would try to help him out, but whenever she asked him what was wrong he’d just shrug it off, saying that it was nothing.

Well, it clearly wasn’t nothing, but Cosette decided she’d pick her battles. Marius would tell her when he was ready and, anyways, Cosette had homework to do. The grind never stopped for a third-year business major. 

Tuesday morning, though, she’d woken up to an empty bed. Odd, because she almost always left before Marius did and she hadn’t missed her alarm. A quick look around their apartment uncovered a sticky note reading, “Out for coffee and breakfast with Courf! Love you, ma cherie” in Marius’ infamous scrawl. Cosette couldn’t help but smile to herself at the term of endearment, and added the note to a box in her nightstand drawer where she kept everything he’d ever written to her.

After breakfast, Cosette found she had a little extra time in the morning, so she pulled on a blue cardigan and brought the box outside to the balcony. She hadn’t gone through this in nearly all of the two and a half years she’d been with Marius. The notes traced all the way back to high school, to the locker notes from a secret admirer. Cosette gave a soft laugh of nostalgia. She hadn’t figured out that the sweet notes- always with something nice to say about her mind or her personality or the way her hands danced across a keyboard when she thought she was alone- had been coming from the cute guy who sat just inside her periphery in the cafeteria.

They’d started talking that summer, going out to cafés and little bookshops in undiscovered realms of Paris, little perfect days speckled with obligatory trips to the Eiffel Tower, lingering glances, and hands brushing together as softly as the breeze. Come the sweltering heat of August, sheltered with him in the empty ice cream store where he'd taken a summer job, she cut her losses and made her confession. The next note in the box was the one he pulled out of the pocket of his blue apron after she'd finished, crinkled on the seams from being kept there too long. Three little words, "Be my girlfriend?" in black ink brought happy laughter to the inside of the little shop, linked hands and touching lips, promises made that had yet to be fulfilled.

He took her to a park near his apartment for their first date, where she’d enjoyed delicious lasagna that she couldn’t believe was home-cooked. She’d gotten lost in the flowers, and Marius had taken pictures of her among the bushes. Those pictures were still his lock screen on his phone today, and Cosette had to admit that they were some of the best she’d ever seen. They laid on the blanket, watching the stars, and he slipped her a note that read, “You’re the prettiest constellation that I’ve ever seen.”

The next notes were those that she found in her textbooks and notebooks, even one wrapped around a pencil. At the same Parisian Grande École, Maris had taken (and mastered) every language they offered while Cosette frantically tried to decide what she wanted for her life. On the night before she officially switched over to business (with a minor in art), she had spent the evening wringing her hands, twisting and pulling her hair and biting her nails, completely unable to get out of her own head. She'd called Marius who was over in a flash, who took her hands into his and whispered oaths of love into her ear, who stroked her hair while she laid in his lap and asked her about her dreams.

"It's stupid, but-"

She couldn't get the words out, irrationally afraid he was going to judge her. He said nothing, just continued to run his hands through her hair, detangling the knots she'd put it in with her stress. He said nothing, and said everything at the same time. She closed her eyes, and tried to get the words out like ripping off a bandage.

"I've always wanted to open a flower shop," she'd said, twisting around to look him in the eye as if she were challenging him to say anything. "It's just something that really calls to me. It has since I was little."

Marius thought about it for a few moments, and there had never been a time where Cosette had been more envious of his endless patience. She shook under his hands, waiting for the verdict.

"Cosette, I think that's an amazing idea. You'd be so wonderful at that. What do you need for that, business? Maybe with art, too, for color theory and arranging?"

Marius didn't understand why she laughed into his legs, or why she pulled herself up to kiss him, hard, once she stopped laughing. The note he left her in the morning said simply, "Follow your dreams" with a few rough sketches of flowers- a red rose, a white carnation, and a stem of lavender. 

Tucked into her notebooks were all kinds of notes, ranging from a simple "break a leg!!" to a lengthy letter, written by an obviously inebriated Marius, decrying her beauty and expressing, at length, how lucky he was to have her.That one was Cosette's favorite by far. Even if it had a tequila stain in the left corner.

Another one, from a few months ago, was the pinnacle of Marius' bad drawing skills. It was a comic in three panels (three sticky notes). The first panel was of a stick figure (Marius?) handing a stick figure with long hair (her?) a key. The second panel depicted the same two stick figures watching TV together on a couch, with another stick figure with curly hair (courf?) walking towards the edge of the frame, beside an arrow that said "(combeferre and enjolras)". The third frame was a sheet of paper covered in squiggles except for the bottom two lines. The top one had a euro sign, more squiggles, then the words "per month", the second one had two x's and Marius' name written by the one on the left, with Cosette's name by the one on the right. Truth be told, it took Cosette a few seconds to figure out exactly what Marius was trying to say. She blamed it on his drawing skills: “How the hell was I supposed to know that was a key, Marius?”

He helped her carry her boxes over to his apartment the next day. He strained a muscle trying to outlift Cosette’s Papa, who at one point had stacked up five boxes full of books and was carrying them around, acting like it was the easiest thing in the world. The note that night had read, “I don’t know how to feel about the fact that your Papa is stronger than I am.” Cosette had responded verbally with, “Just go with it. He’ll never let you forget it.” and physically with a kiss on the cheek.

When she'd broken her leg at a riot in October of her junior year at university, she got a note saying "I'll carry you anywhere you need to go". When she stressed herself out to the point of panic attacks about midterms later that month, she'd gotten one that read, "You're the smartest person I know, you've got this". 

Finally, Cosette closed the box and went back inside to put it back in her drawer. She pulled on a shoe- just one, the doctors said she still had to wear her walking boot brace everywhere- and set out for her car. She had a long day of meetings and presentations ahead of her, and Marius’ odd behavior still weighed on her mind.

*****

Cosette left her last seminar at 5 pm, starting the thirty minute drive back to the apartment. The drive was the better part of Cosette’s day, especially on a day as nice as that one. Even though it was early November, the breeze was gentle and the air wasn’t too cold. Cosette rolled down her window and let an arm rest on the edge of the window, her hand feeling the evening air. 

Marius had texted her that day- just once, which was strange but not completely out of character- to let her know that he was treating her to something nice that night. Tuesday was an odd choice for a date night, but Cosette went with it. If this was what Marius had been stressed about, she hoped that everything went exactly as planned for him.

She arrived back at their apartment just after 5:30, having been held up by a rather annoying bottleneck. She smiled at the receptionist as the entered the lobby, then got into the elevator to ascend to their fifth-floor flat. She unlocked the door and was met with a harried Marius.

“Cosette! I’m glad to see you. I’m not quite done setting everything up yet, so would you mind waiting in our room for a minute?” She was surprised to see that he wore a blue button-up and a black tie, complete with dress pants and his nicest leather shoes. She raised an eyebrow.

“Should I change?”

Marius gave her a soft smile. “If you’d like, you may. You know I think you’re beautiful no matter what you’re wearing,” he replied. Cosette snorted and leaned in to give him a quick kiss, then retreated to their bedroom so that Marius could continue whatever he’d been doing. 

In their room, she stripped off the clothes she’d been in all day and traded them for her favorite and comfiest dress, a dark grey sweater dress with a turtleneck top. She paired it with black leggings and a black low-wedge bootie. She sat on the bed and snapchatted her outfit, adding it to her story with the caption, “Date night!”. In the kitchen, she heard the oven timer go off, as well as a couple clashes and a muffled swear. Cosette choked back a laugh and sent a text off to Courf, knowing he’d appreciate his best friend’s clumsiness.

A few more minutes of waiting culminated in Marius opening the door to their room, slightly out of breath, and extending a hand to help Cosette up from the bed. He pulled her in, one hand on her waist and one in her hair, to kiss her before he pulled away and led her into the kitchen.

It had been transformed. Marius had made use of their dimmer switch to create a romantic mood, which he’d accented with candles (Cosette recognized her Papa’s silver candleholders that he’d given them as a housewarming gift) and a vase full of fern, forget-me-not and red salvia, which was a surprisingly tasteful combination. Cosette was tempted to take her phone out to snap a picture for inspiration later, but decided against it. 

“This is beautiful, Mari,” she said, pressing another kiss to his cheek. He granted her a smile and pulled out her chair for her.

“Shall we eat? I made lasagna for us.”

Cosette sat down. “Sure! You know I love your cooking.”

Marius let out a little laugh, and served Cosette a plate of food. She noticed that his hands were shaking, but she decided not to bring them up. He sat after serving himself and shot her a goofy smile, the one that she’d seen so many times before and honestly couldn’t imagine living without. She gave him one back, and then he motioned that she should start her dinner while fumbling with the remote control for their radio. The playlist that he’d made her two years ago came on, all soft romantic songs that seemed perfect for the equation.

His lasagna was as good as always, seasoned with a spice of basil and a hint of rosemary that always made her want for seconds. The rosé that he served to go with it accented the sweet tomato and the tangy cheese perfectly, creating a meal that was truly delectable. She still didn’t know how he pulled it off, having grown up with the microwave meals that her Papa was barely capable of making. 

The man himself wasn’t talkative at all during dinner, which was a huge contrast from his typical nervous nature. Generally, he couldn’t shut up when he was anxious. Now, the only outward sign of the anxiety she’d seen this morning was the soft jiggle of his leg and a hint of something in his eyes whenever they made eye contact. For Cosette’s part, she didn’t try to force conversation, enjoying the amicable silence that they were capable of. She counted his freckles by the candlelight while she cleaned her plate, and her eyes glanced upon his eyelashes and soft, round lips. She caught herself thinking, for the five thousandth time, how lucky she was to have him. And she knew he felt the same about her.

He finished his plate with a few scrapes and a small cough, then looked at her with a smile.

“Have I told you I love you yet today? Because I really do.”

Cosette grinned back at him. “I love you too.” She took his hand across the table when their favorite song came on the playlist. A few opening chords sounded, then Taylor Swift’s soft voice filled the room.

“There’s glitter on the floor after the party… Girls carrying their shoes down in the lobby…”

Cosette rose from her seat and held out her hand. “Dance with me?”

Marius nodded and tripped a little as he stood up from his chair, taking Cosette’s hand and leading her into the open space by the living room. She nestled herself on his chest, holding his shoulder with one hand and stroking the hair on the back of his neck with the other. She swayed slowly to the rhythm of the song. Marius smiled and held her close.

“I love you, cherie,” he whispered in her ear. She smiled and leaned in to kiss him softly.

“Candle wax and polaroids on the hardwood floor…. You and me forevermore”

As the song faded away, Marius pulled away from Cosette slightly. 

“Will you come for a walk with me?” he asked with a slight shake in his voice. 

“Sure” she responded, squeezing his hand.

“Great,” he gave her a quick kiss on her cheek. “Let me just grab our coats.” Marius jogged into the bedroom, then emerged a few moments later with both of their coats in hand. He helped her into hers and wrestled his on, then opened the door and gestured Cosette through. He followed after her, then locked the door behind him. He tucked his keys into his coat pocket, and took her hand. His hands were still shaking, so she gave his hand a squeeze.

The two of them walked out of the apartment and down the street hand in hand. The sun was just beginning to set as they took a familiar turn towards a familiar park. Cosette smiled in recognition.  
“This is where we went on our first date!”

“Yeah,” Marius said quietly. He walked Cosette over to a nearby bench and they sat down. He turned to look at her, taking both of her hands in his.

“Cosette,” he started. “You make me so incredibly happy, and I can’t even put it into words. I love you so much and I can’t imagine my life without you anymore.”

Marius took a shaky breath to try to calm himself. “Since our first date, I’ve only loved you more and more each day, and I am just so blessed to have met you.”

Cosette felt her face soften, and she squeezed his hands. She knew, finally, what all the anxiety had been about, what all the worrying and shaking and preparation had been about. She found herself ebulliently happy and completely inspired, so in love that she could barely breathe carrying it all. She nodded, encouraging him to go on, not trusting her own mouth to say the right words.

Marius took another deep breath, taking his hands from hers.

“And after our first date here, all I could think to myself was one day, I am going to marry this girl.” He smiled at her, then stood up from the bench, getting down on one knee and pulling a small box out of his pocket.

“Cosette, would you do me the immense honor of becoming my wife?” He opened the box to reveal a simple band, with a single diamond set in the middle of it.

Cosette felt tears spring from her eyes, and she beamed. She squeezed her eyes shut, trying desperately to save the moment forever in her mind. After a moment, she reopened them, her cheeks wet with joyful tears. She nodded enthusiastically, then held out her hand and said,

“Yes! Yes!!”

Marius let out a sharp breath, and his face broke into that huge goofy smile that she loved so much. He took the ring out of the box and carefully slipped it onto Cosette’s finger as happy tears came to his eyes.

Cosette pulled him up and stood up herself, then launched herself into his arms, audibly sobbing. He picked her up by the waist and swung her around in a circle, before setting her down. He cupped her face in his hand and kissed her, sweet and slow. Her hands rested on his waist, but the fingers of her left hand toyed with the new ring there. She kissed him harder, unwilling to let go, even for a second.

Once they had separated several minutes later, he looked at her in slight shock.  
“Oh my god,” he said, “We’re getting married!”

“Oh my god!” Cosette yelled, and they jumped up and down right there in the park, shrieking with pure joy, hands linked.

******

Cosette held tightly onto Marius all the way back to their apartment, pausing occasionally to wipe away one of her own happy tears or one of his. Once they were home and changed and snuggling in bed, Cosette took a selfie of them, holding out her left hand in front to show off the ring. She posted it to her story, then put her phone away to focus all of her attention on her new fiancé- god, that word made her so happy.

Finally, Cosette thought, we’ve both been found.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading, guys! I hope you liked it!


End file.
